With Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, James Harden, out of the lineup, Brooklyn Nets searches for the right combinations

“We have a lot of games in a short period of time and it always seems like someone is not available.”

Brooklyn Nets head coach Steve Nash said it last week ahead of a game against Detroit, but it has been applicable in almost every case of the team’s 2020-2021 season so far since acquisition of James Harden of Houston a month ago.

Whether it was Durant running out of time on two occasions due to health and safety protocols, Irving being out for a few weeks on leave or a hit here and there for Harden, the Brooklyn Big 3 have played a total of seven games together. . That number will remain at seven as Durant misses his second straight game with a hamstring injury on Tuesday in Phoenix while Irving sits out with a stiff back in Monday’s record-breaking Sacramento victory. of the team at 17-12.

“Obviously we would like to have more continuity, more chemistry,” said Nets forward Joe Harris, “where we’ve had a group playing back-to-back games together, at least establishing a rhythm where we’ve been together for a long time. . “

Brooklyn and almost every other NBA team playing on such a condensed schedule this season haven’t had that luxury. In the 186 minutes Durant, Harden and Irving have been on the floor together, the Nets have beaten their opponents by 39 points overall, 9.8 per 100 possessions, according to NBA.com. The trickiest part was keeping everyone on the floor at the same time. Even more delicate? Find lineups that work for rookie head coach Nash who doesn’t completely crater and won’t lose your squad by a game.

“I don’t know if we have the luxury of staying away from any wetsuits mostly just because we’re thin,” Nash said. “We have to put bodies on the ground and sometimes we have to take risks when it comes to combos.

The staggering minutes when the three All-NBA Nets were in good health generally worked, Harden leading the second unit while Durant and Irving rest, leaving him to resume his one-man show that served him so well in Houston under Mike. D’Antoni, now an assistant under Nash in Brooklyn.

“When they’re not in line with him he should be more aggressive,” Nash said last week. And Harden has more than embraced his role as a point guard, now leading the league in assists but scoring his usual heaps of points when called up. “An aggressive James is the way we want him to play. Some nights it can be 15 assists and some nights it can be 35 points. ”

And while Harden is launching with reserves like Landry Shamet and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot and the Nets still register positive margins, Brooklyn’s best three-way unit has been the trio of Durant, Irving and Harris at +124 in 350 minutes at the total, +16.1 per 100 possessions. But putting groups of players behind that, with guard Tyler Johnson currently more prominent in Nash’s rotation, has been a snap.

“You have to be able to count on everyone 1-15, 1-17, whatever it is,” Harris said. “You have to be able to trust guys who maybe don’t have a lot of a role now but who are ready when their number is called and the opportunity is presented to them.

That could now apply to newly signed swingman Andre Roberson, Durant’s former Oklahoma City teammate, who brings a strong defensive presence to the perimeter. Game planning, Harris said, has focused on the pieces available for the next game, not the superstar who is not available as she prepares for future opponents.

“It’s about controlling what you can and not letting outside factors affect preparation,” Harris said.

The good news is that the Nets have found a team to end games they really like. It’s Durant, Harden and Irving alongside Harris and Jeff Green.

“I think that’s a roster that we’re building on along the way and they’re developing something there,” Nash said. “But how many minutes have they played together in the 25, 30 games? This is something that we will have to continue to develop.

The group of five is Brooklyn’s most-used all-rounder of the season, and they’ve spent a total of 76 minutes together in seven games, edging their opponents by 35 points overall.

“It’s early, but I think it’s a combination we feel comfortable with down the straight line,” said Nash.

Now all the Nets have to do is keep these players on the pitch so that Nash and Brooklyn can use the lineups they want to use rather than the squads they want to use. have use.